Wiksten Wonders

 Hello! Back on the blog today after a bit of a break...largely caused by terrible weather for photos and a general lack of time.

 Up today is the rather popular Wiksten Shift by Wiksten - again, not a new pattern but one I have failed to make for several years on end despite it being in my pattern drawer!

Drawn in by the super-chic versions on Insta I really wanted a basic black version. I'd read a lot about the sizing of this pattern coming up really big and so I wasn't sure whether to immediately size down or stick to the pattern guide. 

Enter the wearable toile. I fished out some lovely soft viscose linen from the stash (Sew Me Sunshine in origin I believe) and set about a straight Size 16. 

There's a brilliant blog post by Wiksten here - explaining how to choose the size and also showing each size on a body! It recommends choosing from bicep size and so paranoid my arms wouldn't fit into a smaller version I went with my regular measurements for bicep and hip. 

I think the size is fine for this, it is an 'oversized' style and the belt takes the waist in nicely. The only slightly annoying thing is that it pulls backwards quite a lot.

Adjustments made were a slight front shoulder adjustment to try and even out the pull, and also I hate gathers so I put a pleat in the back instead.

 

Bagel Cat photo bomb

Happy enough with these results I cracked out some lovely black viscose linen from Lamazi Fabrics called 'flow' and dammmmmmm it's soft. 

 Despite being an identical replica of the toile (save for being longer length) it seems a lot bigger and still pulls down my back a bit. 

Don't get me wrong, I really like it! With a jazzy necklace I think it would be cool - however I may nip this one in a bit at the top and waist to shape it a bit more. Undecided yet!

Sammy getting in on the action here

I feel good to have made these, it's definitely been on my sewing list for a long while and it does give me that freshly 'just checked off' feeling. Now to wait for the weather to catch up to wear these things. It's May but it still thinks it's winter. Come on sandal weather we need you....

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